ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. spell — a short time
  6. wax — to grow
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wind — moving air
  9. file — a document
  10. spell — magic
  11. file — a tool
  12. kid — to tease
  13. spell — letters
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pass — a permit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. kid — child
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — the animal
  23. file — a line of people
  24. wax — for sculpting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com